Trade ministers on Saturday stepped up efforts for a global trade deal, signalling a new readiness to narrow differences as a key deadline looms, Reuters reported. While talks in the Swiss mountain resort of Davos saw no hard bargaining, ministers from 30 World Trade Organisation (WTO) members renewed a pledge for a pact on lowering barriers to commerce in farm and industrial goods by the end of April. "Today it is fair to say that there was consensus for the first time that all pieces of the puzzle need to come together at once," said United States Trade Representative Rob Portman. European Union Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson, who has been at loggerheads over agriculture with major exporters such as Brazil, said he noted greater flexibility on the part of all. "I did feel encouraged by what I heard around the table," said Mandelson, who warned earlier this week that the EU had nothing to lose if talks collapsed now. The Swiss-hosted gathering was the first meeting of ministers since a tense conference in Hong Kong last December at which the April deadline was set. A draft trade deal, including all the major political decisions on market opening in farm and industrial goods and services, had initially been due at Hong Kong. But the WTO opted for a delay because differences were too deep, particularly in agriculture, where the European Union has been under intense pressure to make more concessions from both Brazil and rich exporters like the United States and Australia. Brussels, however, has been equally adamant that the time has come for Brazil, India and other leading developing countries to say what they are prepared to offer in areas of interest to the Europeans, such as industrial goods. This soured the tone in Hong Kong. But there were signs in Davos that the mood was changing. "Progress should be made in all areas to reach a balanced outcome," the ministers said in a statement.
